Elevated Hearts
by GhostAuthor
Summary: Annie couldn't hold in her groan this time and slumped to the floor."As if my day hasn't been bad enough. First, I get in late because of my alarm. Then, I have to work late cover the work I missed, and now I'm stuck in an elevator with you. No offense."


**Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.**

Today was not Annabelle's day. On top of waking up late, she'd been forced to work overtime. She rounded the corner as quickly as she could and saw the elevator doors start to close.

"Hold the elevator!"

To her surprise, a black cane shot out and held the doors apart. The doors opened, and Annie barely suppressed a groan. Inside the elevator was her boss, Mr. Gold. This was going to be one long awkward ride. He stepped back and let her inside. As usual, he was in one of his black suits that probably cost more than her salary for a month.

"Miss French. You're keeping late hours, I see,"he said in that familiar Scottish drawl that terrified and excited her.

"Just catching up on some paperwork, sir. And yourself?"

"The same, I'm afraid. This deal with Regal's Inc. is driving me mad."

She laughed."That explains your foul mood this week then."

"Have I been that terrible?"

"Ruby wants to murder you, and Mary Margret is fearing for her job."

He chuckled."I'll try and tone it down until the deal's over with, but I make no promises."

"Pretty soon I'll have to bring you tea every five minutes."

"Could you? Tea from you is the only reason I haven't snapped completely."

"If I did that, I'd never have time to work."

Gold was about to reply when the elevator lurched. Both of its occupants grabbed the wall railing to steady themselves. The lights flickered for a moment, and the box was completely still.

"We're stuck,"Gold spat with disdain.

Annie couldn't hold in her groan this time and slumped to the floor."As if my day hasn't been bad enough. First, I get in late because of my alarm. Then, I have to work late cover the work I missed, and now I'm stuck in an elevator with you. No offense."

"None taken, dearie."Gold carefully lowered himself to sit next to her."Nothing to do now but wait for the back up generators to kick in."

She sighed."I guess you're right, so what do we do until then?"

"As horrible as the idea may seem, you could talk to me, Miss French."

"It's not as horrible as you think, Mr. Gold. You could probably talk about anything and keep a lady interested just because of your voice."

He looked at her, slightly puzzled."My voice?"

"Yeah. I mean, you'd be amazed at how many girls swoon over an accent."

"Present company included?"He gave her his most dazzling smile, and she blushed.

"I'll never tell."

He shifted his cane to his other side and leaned back, still smiling."I'll take that as a yes."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night."

"Are you offering?"

She laughed and whacked his shoulder."Mr. Gold! Do you flirt with all your secretaries?"

"Only the ones I like, dearie."

Annie was silent for a moment. Mr. Gold didn't _like _anybody. Tolerated, sure, but he didn't like anyone."You like me?"

"Of course. You're the only woman I know that isn't afraid of me that can also hold a decent conversation. Your delicious tea is only a bonus."

"Wow. I never thought-"

She was cut off when the elevator lurched again, and Anne instinctively clutched at his jacket. Gold placed his hand over hers before the lights flickered then went out.

"This just keep getting better and better, don't they?"he asked bitterly. Annie gave him no reply, and it was then that he noticed that she was shaking."Belle? Are you alright?"

"I-I-I'm fine. It's just the room. It's-"her words trailed off, but he understood.

"Are you afraid of the dark, dearie?"

"A little. When I was little, I played hide and seek at my cousin's party and hid in one of the hallway closets. What I didn't know was that the closets locked from the outside. After a while of silence, I realized that I was stuck, and I've been terrified of the dark ever since. Kind of silly, isn't it?"she finished sheepishly before she felt his arm go around her shoulders.

"Not at all. After a particularly nasty fall that resulted in me needing a cane, I was afraid of heights myself. Then I learned that it wasn't the fall I should fear but the sudden stop."

"And that helped?"

"Oh yes. Just like your fear, Belle. It's not the darkness you should fear but what's in it, and seeing as how I am the only other thing in here with you, there is nothing to fear."

Annie listened to his words and began feeling better."You can be pretty scary when you want to be, Mr. Gold, and I can't see you."

He chuckled at her joke, happy that she was feeling better."Well, I promise I won't bite. Does that make you feel safer?"

"Yes. Thank you. For everything."

"Think nothing of it. Can't have you hating this place as much as I do."

Annie settled against him, and surprisingly, he didn't protest. Instead, Gold simply rested his chin on her head and tucked her closer to him.

"Where would you be right now if the elevator wasn't jammed?"she asked out of the blue.

"I'd be at home making dinner probably."He heard her laugh then."What?"

"Sorry. You can cook?"

"Yes. Quite well actually. What's so funny about that?"

"It's just that most men I know don't even know how to turn on a stove, let alone cook a decent meal by themselves."

"I'm not most men, dearie. I've lived alone most of my life, and after my wife left, I had to fend for myself."

"You were married?"

Damn. He hadn't meant to let that slip. He hadn't told anyone about her before, but Belle made his walls and filters shut down."Um..Yes. A long long time ago."

"What happened?"Even in the dark, he could feel her blue eyes looking up at him, waiting for him to continue.

"I was young and had just started out by working at a shipyard. After my accident there, she realized that I was useless and left with our boy. After a few years, I took over and became the man you see today. She came crawling back then, but Bae wasn't with her. He'd died of pneumonia a year before, and she didn't even think to tell me."

Annie could hear the emotion in his voice as he spoke and hugged him tighter. He sounded as if he hadn't spoken of this in a while, and she felt honored that he'd told her.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be."He took a deep breath."You realize of course that if you tell anyone of this I will deny it and have to kill you."

She smiled to herself."I won't, but you wouldn't kill me anyway. Who else is going to bring you your tea?"

"Hadn't thought of that. Then I suppose I'll have to kidnap you and lock you away in my house."

"Then you'd have to put up with me forever."

He bowed his head and whispered in her ear."You're only tempting me more, Miss French."

Annie shivered again but not from the cold. Suddenly,the elevator shook again, and the lights flickered once more. The two inside held each other tightly until the lights came on fully and the elevator began its descent once again. In a few minutes, they were on the lobby floor of Mr. Gold's building. Gold and Annie remained still for a moment before realizing their position and broke apart. Annie helped him stand and straightened his tie before the silently headed for the building's doors. The both stopped just outside the doors and looked out into the night before looking at each other again.

"Um...So this is it,"she said nervously.

"I suppose it is,"he replied, equally nervous.

"Good night, and I hope you don't mind me saying this but you made my day better, Mr. Gold. "

"Good night."Mr. Gold watched her walk away with a smile before whispering to himself,"The same to you, dearie. The same to you."

_**FIN**_


End file.
